What this painting tells us about Frida Kahlo

[@theartassignment]

Thanks to Rosianna Halse Rojas (@missxrojas) for lending us her lovely voice for this episode. My Spanish is atrocious, as those who regularly watch this series know. Rosianna is Mexican-British, has made a number of appearances on this channel, and kindly helped us out in attempting to do justice to the fine work of Frida Kahlo.

[@stuffbymagdalena]

i recognized her voice immediately!! i didnt know that she was Mexican tho

[@DamianParedes99]

I think that at 1:40 min it's the revolution war not independence..

[@VPFrio]

Thank you so much for the beautiful video and your insightful interpretation of Frida's Painting! This was easily one of my favorite episodes and I love hearing new perspectives on a topic. If you are open to feedback at any level I would suggest in the future , a brief recap of who our new narrator is and why they feel like they are a great guide to create conversation of a particular piece/idea. Again, I loved this episode...but it took a third time watching it to truly listen to the meaning and not just think "who is this random person talking to me on The Art Assignment's Channel" lol. Overall thank you for this resource, you all are amazing!

[@jesipohl6717]

Kahlo was a well-known and self-identifying "transvestite", participating in a practice that would overlap with both dragging as well as transgender identity today (in fact, M.P. Johnson, key to pride and the LGBTIQ+ civil rights movement, still identified as a "transvestite" in 1969 and even after stonewall). Marlene Dietrich is also part of this tradition or rather was an active part until she fled Berlin as a refugee. She even visited Berlin that was known as the Sapphic capital due to its lesbian, "pansexual" (to insert a term out of time) and transvestite (largely lesbian harboured) culture. Apropos the most important surrealist of Berlin is Hannah Höch who was coeval and probably frequented the same circles that Frida did in Berlin. This is an invisibilisation of important developments in popular trans culture. It's clearly not a purposeful one, but rather an uncareful one. I would love to see this video corrected to include her full-identity. To include other more marginal aspects of her identity yet forget to mention the word queer or its close antecedents even once is an error that invalidates the whole thesis. I think this is especially an important correction considering the context of normalised transphobia in some anglophone contexts. I'm thinking of recent publications in the guardian, transphobic attacks at pride in london, JK Rowling's appropriation of gay culture to earn money and support of a universally recognised transphobic wannabe researcher. Pleas un-erase Frieda's gender expression. Better still, ask an expert on it (not me, though I seem to know more than is talked about here).

[@aletheiaverite]

yayyy

[@JoaoPessoa86]

I remember when that Barbie was announced all I could think when I saw the picture was "where's the uni-brow?", it struck me as astoundingly tone deaf even for Mattel

[@janaekelis]

Her most important symbol, ignored

[@Virgomeowmeow111]

The doll does have a unibrow...if you look at close up pictures you can see the unibrow hairs. My guess is they didnt make it crazy opaque because it might have looked weird with the proportions of the doll. And her natural brow wasnt that dark either.

[@JoaoPessoa86]

@@Virgomeowmeow111 they erred on the wrong side of caution

[@Virgomeowmeow111]

@@JoaoPessoa86 meh I'm a huge doll fan and I like it :)

[@kevbotroberts]

The problem wasn’t that the doll didn’t have a unibrow (even tho it really does, BARLEY!), but the fact that they made a doll of her in the first place! Don’t think she would’ve liked her image used in such a greedy corporate way for profit! I’m sure she could’ve cared less if they didn’t fill in her brow all the way, it’s what the doll stands for that’s upsetting! I don’t think she would’ve like that aspect of it!

[@xingmei818]

My mother loves Frida kahlo, as a child, I found her book that shows Kahlo's works. I was so afraid of it. Now, I understand my fear. The amount of pain and vulnerability that she expresses through her work is really compelling. Thank you for making this video. I have learned so much more about her.

[@readreadwriteread9039]

I had spinal fusion surgery six months ago, and I was for the first time acquainted with Kahlo's art and writing whilst in recovery. She stretched out her hand and showed me what was possible, not despite of pain, but often because of it. Viva Frieda.

[@zongi700]

Wow. That was beautifully said. I hope you're doing well in recovery!

[@readreadwriteread9039]

@@zongi700 The fact that I can walk is apparently pretty miraculous, so yeah I'm doing well XD Thanks!

[@zongi700]

@@readreadwriteread9039 That's amazing! Huuuge respect to you! :)

[@timeandplace4114]

I am glad you have Frida during this "Healing Time". Be well and stay safe.

[@storythreads]

"She made herself into a sacred figure to be venerated, an icon fixed in time." I choked up at that line. She made herself - a bisexual, brown-skinned, disabled woman - into a goddess.

[@costasmae2359]

@Rafael Acosta i think its moreso about how those kinds of figures (disabled, bisexual, brown) arent considered as ideal enough to be fit for a god or goddess but she still portrayed herself as such. (because she is oop)

[@vinceknox4425]

Rafael Acosta Do you actually think disability is superficial? Are you that dense?

[@LuisSierra42]

@@vinceknox4425 He represents an important portion of modern society though

[@Tinyvalkyrie410]

Rafael Acosta her identity was massively important to her art. The largest portion of her art is a close examination of those exact things. That kind of careful unflinching exploration of identity, when her identity involves those things is almost guaranteed to fail, especially when she was doing it. It is ANYTHING but superficial. Even these days, that kind of work is unpopular, especially from people “like her.” I kinda feel like you may have commented before watching the video since all of this was covered in it.

[@bingo1232]

Lydia -- I was going to leave a comment.... but you said it so much better than I. Viva Frida!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[@kevinmuendo9889]

I love this channel but I've never understood the shyness of people when they talk about Frida, never to bring up her communist and revolutionary ideologies? after reading her diary (especially towards the end of her life), where she talks about communism being the only thing she lives for, and her one love, it almost seems disingenuous and borderline disrespectful to the artist, to admire her aesthetics while stripping her of her message. “I must struggle with all my strength to contribute the few positive things my health allows to the Revolution, the only real reason to live.” - Frida Kahlo

[@Emma-vu3ih]

An artwork never has a "message", only feelings and ideas it can try to convey, and no matter how explicit the references are to political ideologies, they're always subject to interpretation and the artworks can always be looked at from different angles. This video has chosen to study a portrait in which her communist ideology is not its focal point, from a more autobiographical point of view, so we can forgive them for not talking about her communists belief (although they did trace back some aspects of her personal life that were not tightly linked with the portrait, so it would have been a plus if they had talked about communism). That being said, I do agree that, in general (not in this video, which I found very instructive and well-made), when people talk about Kahlo, they are fully disrespectful of her. Her image has been appropriated my pseudo-feminists who have either white-washed and airbrushed her image, or made her into a token of the struggles that she represents to them. And of course used it for profit by selling this simplified and easy to consume version of the artist, where Kahlo becomes "Frida". And Frida's communist beliefs cannot be displayed and discussed in a nuance way, because that just wouldn't sell.

[@kevinmuendo9889]

@@Emma-vu3ih i totally agree with your Barthesian "death of the author king" analysis of her and all artists work, though. i think works that were purposely made for propaganda, (this is the classical definition of propaganda) aka Guernica, have a moral role to best convey the original intent I'm also apprehensive, which I can see you are as well, mythologising her (another Barthes theory), it just seems we pacify history in order for comfortable and non-status quo disruptive consumption. and the danger is if this is ubiquitous in culture, it leads to a society of simulacra. (sorry if i have used to much jargon lol) this video and this channel in general are really respectful.

[@liloeuf]

The art assignment mentioned this in the first video they made about Frida Kahlo.

[@jaydubya3698]

I've always found it interesting that she was such a committed communist, but never recognized that had her ideology succeeded, her individual voice and expression would have been diminished, squashed, and ultimately eliminated by the messaging, propoganda and will of the State, which is meant to supercede all individual needs, desires, and dreams. Frieda Kahlo's work would been deemed irrelevent to the needs of the State, tossed into the trash bin of history and she would have lived and died anonymously.

[@kevinmuendo9889]

@@jaydubya3698 first one must define terms before going forward, (habit through academic training) what you are speaking about is stalinism, an authoritarian version of communism, (there are many variations to communism, just like capitalism), this form indeed as you have pointed out, values the state more than individual, and the prevailing art style was russian realist art, (check out paintings from Pervov), they just like the germans would have classed her as a "degenerate artist", (check out the degenerate art exhibition of 1937) and would have dismissed her artwork. however, frida in her early years, was (from my readings of her diary), was more ideologically driven marxist, then a political bolshevik or menshevik, this came from her dislike of american style capitalism, (check out diegos mural for rockefeller) and the mexican revolution, (thus more reactionary then utopian) there is a big difference, a lot of argument normally get lost in the minutia of definitions so thought it was important to note (however i will note, she did fall more into a stalinist in the last few years of her life, however once more, more ideologically and economically rather than political, and it should be noted, the fame from capitalistic success, she would have not deemed a positive, she cared more about the revolution then herself - see aforementioned quote) also should be noted, the term propaganda, preWW2 had very different, and ultimately, not pejorative connotation, frida, (as well as a lot of the major artists), embraced the term propaganda for their art, thinking it was a moral duty. (if your interested edward bernays has a brilliant book about it)

[@eggstraordinair]

Just a note: the Mexican Revolution and the Mexican Independence are two different wars, 100 years apart, Diego Rivera and Frida Kahlo's art happened after the Revolution, which is was a very complicated war that started as an effort to overthrow President Porfirio Díaz and extended far longer after he was deposed.

[@juliamontich9588]

The Frida on the right, the one "Rivera loved", has no white sparkle in her eyes, making her look much more lifeless, or maybe it's just my perception. But undeniably, although they have similar expressions, this detail changes her gesture.

[@thayse_thay]

The one Frida who is in love looks so serious

[@reigee2869]

Y’all are painting your own narratives into her work. It was a tumultuous relationship for sure, but Frida loved Diego deeply. He was the center of her universe.

[@theplotsynopsis1112]

Wow i'm ashamed to say I had never really delved into Frida Kahlo's artworks before seeing this. Will definitely check out more of her paintings, i found some of these absolutely amazing !

[@lilMissmAlice]

Frida Kahlo began study at the University of Mexico at age 15 when she and one other woman were allowed to be the first women to attend the school. Her body was shattered by a steel rod and she was left on the steps of the capital building to die until all others were cared for and when gathering her body a pulse was found. See "The Broken Column", self-portrait.

[@mackaylacook148]

I remember seeing that one back in highschool

[@mariferlopez9688]

The firts woman to atend University in México was Matilde Montoya Lafragua in 1908, not Frida Kahlo. Kahlo only study at highschool.

[@lailedcat]

It’s really cool to hear Rosianna talking about Frida Kahlo.

[@Raeonneptune]

She made me love my art class in high school. Honestly I loved all the art discussions. When we got to study her I always felt like I felt her struggles through her art.

[@rjpod7606]

As Mexican, and proud of my culture, you did an amazing job honoring (in my opinion) one of the greatest!!! THANK YOU!

[@gabbyvelasquez3767]

i remember falling in love with her paintings as a child but not really knowing why. i felt like i could see myself in her paintings, a self i had not fully formed yet. as an adult i see why her work struck me so hard; i too am a brown, bisexual, disabled latin woman. when i see her work, i see my own pain and hardship reflected.

[@berkleypearl2363]

Something that I really like about Frida’s art is that sometimes, to me, it looks unskilled and ugly. But that doesn’t make it UGLY that just makes it interesting. Because it’s not unskilled, it’s just different and you have to look at it differently to appreciate the effort and time put into each piece. Which is really fun and beautiful

[@4eyed_mouse]

I was at Frida’s exhibition in Saint Petersburg! It was unforgettable. Since then, I’ve become more and more interested in her art... thanks for the video!💋

[@JessieCarty]

Absolutely love Rosianna taking us through this and the way they highlight the different areas of the art to help draw our eyes to the conversation.

[@m.aburas]

I was freaking out the first second when I recognized that it is not Sara’s voice. I feared she might be sick. God bless you and thanks to the lovely narrator.

[@danmg09]

I had the same reaction at first.

[@edwardduarte7393]

I have been to Frida and Diego's home in the 90's andI loved it. So vibrant. Such a rich history of Mexico. I lot of women like here cause she's "strong" but I always thought of her as Diego's wife (cause Diego's work was so powerful and influential in Mexico). This piece in particular says a lot including the scale. I really like this piece.

[@GloriaJWimberley]

A brilliant artist of much complexity🌹🌹🌹

[@fall_outboy9427]

Kahlo was a genius!! So open and honest in her art. I love her work

[@dgnas]

thank you for the video! wonderfully done. i’ve always looked up to frida khalo since i was young as a latinx icon. i remember skipping class to go to the frida khalo amd diego rivera exhibit at the Detroit Institute of Art my senior year of high school. she’s been so commercialized people often forget what a revolutionary she was. stay healthy folks!

[@Ghostofthegallow]

I love her but i cant stand to look at the two fridas, because i did a 100 page essay on it and i never want to see it again lmao

[@misosoup7531]

100 page 😧

[@Ghostofthegallow]

@@misosoup7531 yep lmao

[@idaliazavala8172]

Is there any way I can get access to your paper? Can I find it online? Sounds interesting.

[@Ghostofthegallow]

@@idaliazavala8172 lol ill see if i can, i handed it in like 6 months ago so idk xD

[@idaliazavala8172]

@@Ghostofthegallow Thank you so much! I can't believe you wrote 100 pages. That's insane.

[@fenecofeneco19]

Laughed at the scared reaction, after Beyoncè's cheap and vain Frida drag ..ALTHOUGH IT'S BRILLIANT!!

[@brightmacsworld8353]

I wish I got to meet her 1954 a day before she died to meet her just to see her I need 300K subscribers

[@huethuong2810]

thank you for introducing me to art. I have zero background through art, but your channel makes me fall in love with it so naturally

[@CuongN24]

you guy should do 'the case for Gothic art' sometime,i feel like medieval art is always overlook and under the shadow of renaissance art

[@Bee-nw6df]

Rosianna’s voice is so lovely!

[@Scribe13013]

She knew the beauty...and the horror

[@santiagobenites]

I've got The Art Assignment set on 'Subscribed and Notified', and I couldn't be happier with it. I studied art history, yet there are so many things that I'm learning from these wonderful videos. I love the variety of topics, and the different perspectives presented. Top notch! Cheers!

[@rtk3543]

This was a facinating snapshot into the life of the wonderful Frida Kahlo, I just felt the presentation was too rushed and I barely had time to take it all in, all the same thanks for putting in the time and effort to produce this video.

[@davidwilliams7935]

Watch is again. The miracle of the interenet.

[@RainOnTheRooftops]

This was such an amazing video, thank you so much. It so brilliantly both addressed the specific painting and Kahlo's work as a whole - and the myth that still lives on.

[@mechailreydon3784]

It’s weird how the greatest artists have the toughest stories.

[@alrightspock]

Yay, I’ve adored Frida Kahlo and her work since Spanish class in high school. I even wrote an important exam paper on her political expressions in her diary entries and her paintings because she is so fascinating. Great video! Lovely to hear Rosianna narrate it. I have the book by Hayden Herrera - I must get around to reading it soon.

[@davidwilliams7935]

"I even wrote an important exam paper..." If I do say so myself.

[@alrightspock]

@@davidwilliams7935 I'm just saying the exam was important not my paper by any means. Give people the benefit of the doubt. :)

[@alfredkowsky2752]

Many thanks for a wonderful video on this complex & talented lady.

[@anthonygarcia5966]

I’ve been to Casa Azul. If ever in Mexico City you must visit her house. I saw this painting hanging I believe in the opera house in Mexico City. My favorite artist.

[@Euphr05yn3]

I've been a fan of Frida since I was like 4. I remember having a little storybook about her.

[@allendavies8354]

Truly an original and interesting artist

[@MiguelJuanez]

Beautiful words and appreciation. Thank you.

[@cibsim]

This is an amazing story. Je vous remercie beaucoup. Toute cette information si bien présentée nous réjouit !

[@sabrinanascimento1267]

I love Frida and am inspired by her.

[@Xenolilly]

Frida Kahlo is one of my all time favorite painters.

[@Annatomova7]

Added note: her father may have been born in Germany, but Frida is half ethnic Hungarian.

[@tesnimguesmi6087]

Your video is a piece of art in itself

[@lorenabpv]

i do love the guest idea (and the pronunciation) but it was weird jarring without seeing rosianna's face lol i get that it wouldn't have been practical since she's in the uk, but anyway, lovely collaboration :)

[@timeandplace4114]

Thank you. I never tire of learning about Frida Kahlo.

[@AspienPadda]

Geez I despised writing these out in art theory, you would probably have gotten 100% well done

[@KiriWiriy]

This is amazing, really made some fascinating points

[@usedtomakemesmile]

Great to hear Rosianna’s voice! An awesome choice. Will she be joining for more videos?

[@r.a.k4390]

''What does this painting tell us about Frida Kahlo'' That she's a painter. All jokes aside, she's absolutely brilliant.

[@TheJaredtheJaredlong]

That scene from Coco makes so much more sense now!

[@Secondhandrose23]

Frida Kahlo is one of my favorite artists ever. I can’t wait to one day travel to Mexico and see the Casa Azul where she lived 💙

[@Ivanmaradonaaa]

Hahahaha for a moment I read Cruz Azul hahaha

[@jadeherrera4928]

I’ve been there!! It’s divine!! But make sure to go early and get tickets in advanced... it’s tremendously crowded... I hope you go there! Coyoacan is beautiful!

[@pia1945]

the english accent is so satisfying to hear !

[@mossboy2564]

Would y’all please do a video on Hyman Bloom? I saw an exhibit on his art recently, and I *immediately* fell in love. I’d like to get to know more about his art and who he was, as an artist and a person! I really love how accessible u make art history. I really appreciate it!!

[@VeronicaAragon94]

Is this available transcribed? I would love to cite some of what has been said in this video! Thanks for this.

[@rachelcantu7366]

This was such a good video thank you for making me love Frida Kahlo even more

[@00002129]

Awesome vid. I only wish the narration were a little slower - at this speed I find a lot of the very good content just doesn't stick.

[@MauriceDavis-o4t]

Man that double portrait is deep.

[@madelcyfuentes6709]

Lovely well thought-out video ❤️❤️

[@hamiwiremu7154]

Interesting vid. I personally dont get (or perhaps more appropriately, feel) the appeal of Fridas work but watching this video helped me empathize with people who can draw inspiration from her art.

[@RichMitch]

I rate Frida pretty highly

[@Silollypop]

what a beautiful video!

[@berkleypearl2363]

Ok I’m I’m impressed with your Nahuatl pronunciation. That was a completely unintentional language pun and now that I see it I’m very proud. Nahuatl means “to speak clearly”

[@shauna6815]

I love your work! Could you make one about Agnes Martin. She is one of my favorites, along with Georgia O'keeffe.

[@cecilecolinet4084]

Great video! Just a small correction, Breton described her work as a ribbon around a TOMB, not a BOMB. "Un ruban autour d'une tombe."

[@marvinraphaelmonfort8289]

"Aware." Love that!

[@eatbadart]

love this!! can you please do a video about art nouveau? or specifically about Egon Schiele or Aubrey Beardsley ?

[@idiotsloveboxes]

A question I’ve always had about Frida Kahlo & why her work is remembered & taught: is it the art or the person that we love? Once you hear her story, particularly the harrowing details of her life long health problems, that’s what I at least remember most about. The self portraits are very gorgeous & innovative, but I instantly think about the biography, not the brush stokes. I am in awe of her art, but would we care about Kahlo’s art if the quite eventful life story didn’t go with it? Do you love her paintings or do you love her? Or is that the same thing?

[@thepriceofsalt9003]

i love her paintings and her separately. i think one can like the artist (based on their life stories, personality, or something along that line) and not their art, and vice versa. i mean, some people don't like frida's political views but can appreciate her art nonetheless, while others may detest her entirely because of that. some people may love both frida and her art for what she may represent/show them while others just like her without touching the art. it's always different for different people.

[@neredan1182]

am i the only one who is fascinated by this giant aloe vera plant? 1:26 ???

[@intuitivenewyorker2572]

This split is so familiar to me... if anyone has been separated from their beloved (the real deal), the ego feels so under attack by the rift, that you can actually feel yourself splitting to survive. The trauma of the separation causes the split. In my experience, and I am projecting that here, you have to break from the purity of the Love and who that Love turned you into (Frida in white) and occupy an everyday persona (Frida in street attire) to survive. But you end up with four footprints/four hands/two heads/four eyebrows because there are now two of you who are living-- the one who is too devastated to exist any longer as the front person, and the newer one that has to be out there in the world getting things done on behalf of both of you. A broken heart won't kill you, but it can split you in half.

[@mauriceduplessis4431]

Superbe expisé for a great artiste! THANK YOU and take care.

[@AnnoyingAsianWitch]

She's an inspiration to me.

[@wilbert0_]

Really enjoyed the new talent: so knowledgeable, so engaging !!

[@meghanarajaram8635]

Last sentence 👏 👏

[@ry8471]

I notice narrators of this show exercise to speak french names in a french accent as a sort of respecting the artist's nationality while let spanish names be spoken however their english/american accents say it. Why don't they make the same effort with spanish names too?

[@lunayen]

It's due to tonal differences in the languages. It's the same way Spanish speaking people have a problem pronouncing certain words. I'm sure that French people aren't that impressed by how they pronounce French words

[@ry8471]

@@lunayen if they can make an effort to pronounce french names in french, i'm sure it's not that hard to atleast make the same effort to say spanish names in spanish. The thing is they don't even try.

[@emmmmmmmm4086]

ry the narrator is Spanish and British. She speaks Spanish lol

[@FallingStary]

@@ry8471 I think one of the other commenters was trying to say is that as a non french speaker the french sounds alright but to a natural french speaker it is imperfect. To a non spanish speaker the spanish is alright but to a natural spanish speaker it is imperfect. The French isnt as good as it sounds either.

[@ilovefafali]

not really related to this video, though it's brilliant, can we get an episode on Erté and his influence on Art Deco?

[@yomamawhat9879]

Can you do a video about tracing in art please

[@gobboklein904]

The person before the "or this, even though its brilliant" seemed to portray Frida much better..the one thats brilliant dosent even have the eyebrows close.

[@lunacarmin]

Also she banged Leon Trotsky XD. You can see the painting at MUSEO DE ARTE MODERNO in Mexico City. When everything is open again, of course.

[@chilledmonkeybrains9674]

Those brows say unity.

[@pablofitzy]

Those brows say help!

[@deltropico7]

Your Spanish accent ain’t bad. Great video, congratulations!

[@mexguyana]

Viva Frida Kahlo siempre. April 10.22

[@kat9596]

Frida kahlo is one of the most amazing women to live 🙂

[@brennerfineart]

Thanks for this informative video - good to get a refresh about the great artists :-)

[@LuinTathren]

I've loved surrealist art since I was 10. But I didn't truly become enamored with Frida until I began to have problems with my own back. And I eventually went through an unsuccessful surgery to deal with the extreme pain. I am also brown and bisexual. Frida is my Hero and my Goddess. Her vivid expression of pain, both physical and emotional, allows me to also express my pain. I am so very thankful that she lived. Thank you for sharing this. Her way of letting me know that in these difficult time, one must LIVE to be free!

[@aileraguilar3976]

Great job!

[@frown_bean1313]

I saw her on the shows or movie called "Coco"

[@victorialynn6248]

I thought the image she held was of Rivera, not herself. This changes the meaning of this painting for me

[@ericv2841]

> "[Rivera] was a good comrade". Now THAT would have been interesting to unpack

[@sylvanahernandez3290]

Excellent Artist I Relate

[@Exist64]

It's pathetic how so many artist were scared to death by the idea of being faithful to their partner

[@salvatoretavormina5656]

The narration on these videos is much too fast. It's like there is a race on to finish as quickly as possible and get it over with. I always run them at 3/4 speed.

[@NoahOfTheArc]

An interesting video!

[@estrellacasias]

Not gonna lie the british voice made me be like "what?" At first lol no hate

[@dianadelatorre2489]

Your Spanish pronunciation is perfect

[@jinteeel3916]

I feel proud to have facial hair on a womans face.

[@mariannraad105]

not vain, aware.. describes her perfectly.

[@sabrinanascimento5248]

She inspired me to paint. I am tied to my Twin Georg.

[@standauphin1592]

I like Frida

[@_baert]

"This is not she." just sounds grammatically worse than "This is not her."

[@guacamolly_]

It actually is grammatically correct. It's just that most people don't say it that way.

[@JinjiSayson]

It is correct

[@astrologymua3225]

I just found out she passed away when my maternal grandma was only a 1 year old. And she has no idea who Frida Kahlo is.